Another Day
by She of the Shadows
Summary: Humanstuck You stumbled along no longer caring what you looked like to the passerby, not that there would be anyone outside in this rain. Other than you.
1. Chapter 1

You stumbled along no longer caring what you looked like to the passerby, not that there would be anyone outside in this rain. Other than you. Your disheveled black hair clung limply to your face, getting in your eyes, the rain running down your face like tears. Your glasses clack in your pocket with each weary step you take. Your once immaculate clothes are rumpled and sodden, your purple cape now black and clinging doggedly to the backs of your legs. The purple stripe in the front of your hair almost blends into the black draping your face.

You walk under an alcove, its protection a momentary respite from the downpour. You inhale deeply, the action causing you to cough violently. You shiver and continue walking. This is what your life had become. A shambling, desperate montage of walking, running, and dodging. You avoid the people you love, the people you know, your friends. The downpour hit you again as you left the alcove. You barely flinch. You cough again, covering your face in your arm. A flash of red, then the rain darkens your sleeve again. You stop walking, raising your face to the anger of the storm. A flash of light and a throbbing, pulsing roll of thunder seem to say "Keep walking. Keep walking. Never stop." Your head flops back down and you continue staggering, now buffeted by wind. Its howling mirrors the howling in your mind, the constant howling that follows you everywhere. No matter how far you walk, you can't escape the sound. It echoes ceaselessly and you continue walking.

~Reader: Stop Being... Whoever You Are~

~Reader: Be Someone Else Way Cooler~

A throbbing, pulsing bass roll and the song begins. The accompanying drum line kicks in and you bob your head in time. The uneven, pounding, throbbing Dubstep is oddly satisfying to listen to. Though it has no tune and no real meaning, it appeals to you. You pick up your MP3 player and wander aimlessly around your house, listening to the tuneless beat.

Bored of wandering, you decide to go outside. You close your eyes and pull on your jacket, the earbuds temporarily catching on the zipper. Eyes still closed, you open your door and don't realize it's raining until you get off of your enclosed porch and are blasted in the face by a horizontal sheet of rain. Unperturbed, you pull your hood up over your shaggy black hair and set off. Your boots splash through the puddles and your black jeans are soaked within seconds. You aren't worried as you cross the street - your bright yellow jacket would alert anyone to your presence. If there was anyone out. A fork of lightning flickers across the sky. The following thunder was not as much of a sound as it was a feeling. You bare your fang-like incisors in a smile. You absolutely love being outside in a storm. Something in the violent lightning and booming thunder connected to you.

Meandering along the sidewalk, you see another person staggering along the sidewalk. You immediately stereotype him as a drunk by the way he is walking. He staggers along and pitches sideways into the wall, bending over. You almost laugh. Sure you feel sorry for him, but you also think it's amusing that a drunk would be out in the rain throwing up. The more you ponder it, the more unlikely it seems that a drunk would be outside. It was far more likely for one to be inside, throwing up on other drunks than to be outside by themselves.

Hesitantly, you approach the person.


	2. Chapter 2

~Reader: Be The Person~

You continue staggering along, your feet dragging. You would need to find shelter soon. Maybe some doorway might shield you from the rain. Wracked by a fit of coughing, you lean against the cold, wet brick wall. Your blood splatters the wall, the ground, your shirt. You bend over as the coughing intensifies. You wait for the fit to pass, hoping you won't pass out this time. You see, out of the corner of your eye, someone walking cautiously towards you. They have a... Oh, shit. It's Sollux!

"Hey... Are you okay?" He's talking to you. Oh gog he's talking to you!

"Y-yeah..." You say, starting to cough less. "Leave me alone."

He looks slightly offended. "Thure, thure. All I wath doing was athking if you were alright. You're thure you're okay?"

"No, but I don't need your help. Fuck off!" You heave your tired body off the wall and continue your slow, deliberate battle with the wind and rain. He raises his hands in a non-threatening but slightly impudent gesture.

"Okay, okay. Fine. Jeez." He turns away, shaking his head.

Your only reply is to cough. You stagger a few more steps before your vision starts to fill with black. "No... N-Not now...!" You cough again and fall to one knee. You nearly leap upright as you feel an arm in yours, supporting you.

"Let'th get out of the rain, shall we?" You look at the face of the person who had lifted you back upright and freeze. It was Sollux.

"L-let go of me..." Your voice seems to retreat from your hearing. Your vision stretches and warps, filling completely with black spots. You welcome the enveloping darkness of unconsciousness. It saves you from having to explain yourself to him; why you're alone out on the streets, sick, and why you disappeared.

~Reader: Be Sollux~

Holy shit. The random dude was Eridan! That would explain the cloak, but... Why was he here? What was he doing, outside in the rain, especially when he's sick?

Dear gog, what happened to him? He disappeared randomly, but you though he must have moved or something... Kid didn't have friends, he was just there. He was one of those people that everyone knew but nobody was their friend. Everyone noticed when he left, but no one really tried to find him. Your entire fucking grade did nothing.

You did nothing.

You shift awkwardly, trying to get underneath Eridan so you could lift him onto your back. His limp arm smacks against your face, cold as ice. You shift him onto your back faster. He was losing heat. He needed to be inside and warm, fast!

You balance his weight on your back and drape his arms over your shoulders. Heaving yourself back to your feet, you turn around and start back toward your house. He nearly slips off several times, making you have to drape his arms around your neck so his face was awkwardly mushed up against yours.

Gog, he is heavy.

When you finally get to your house, you almost collapse on the front porch. You're completely soaked - Eridan has been dripping water all down the inside of your jacket and now you're freezing too. You open your door and stagger inside, moaning when you're faced with stairs. You drop Eridan's feet as gently as you can to the ground, freeing your arms for climbing the stairs.

You start your slow, arduous journey up the stairs.

~Reader: Be Eridan~


	3. Chapter 3

You come to slowly. Your chest aches and you have a pounding headache. You slowly open your eyes, giving them time to adjust to the dim light. You're on a couch, wrapped in blankets, and you're probably at Sollux's house. You sit up drowsily, your nose following the scent of something rich and savory. You are jolted awake as the air hits your now bare chest. You look down at the exposed bruises and quickly pull the blanket back over your thin shoulders and look around warily.

You know He couldn't be here. There's no way He would know where you are.

That doesn't stop you from being worried, though.

You look around the room you're in, trying to spot your missing clothing. You move your legs and find out that your pants are missing too. And your glasses. You wrap the blanket tighter around yourself, squinting. You stand shakily and take several faltering steps toward the doorway leading out of the room. Sollux appears in it before you can react, carrying a laundry basket and wearing... An apron? He looks at you and blushes slightly under his messy fringe of hair.

"Hey Ampora, glad to thee you're awake. Here are your clotheth, I wathed and dried them. Thoup's in the kitchen if you want thome." He scuttles out of the room, leaving the laundry basket on the floor next to your couch. You stumble slowly to it, your steps uneven and unsteady. You slowly reach down and try not to fall. Pitching sideways, you barely get your arm out to catch yourself before you fall. You make a slight thump as you hit the ground, your arm crumpling underneath you.

Sollux pokes his head into the room. "Dude! You okay?"

"I'm FINE. FUCK OFF," you say. Your voice is gravelly and rough. You raise yourself up, your arms shaking under the weight of your thin torso. Sollux walks over to you, taking one of your arms over his neck and placing one of his arms under your other shoulder.

"Thtand on your own and tell me that." He pulls you upright surprisingly gently. He sets you back down on the couch and pulls the laundry basket to your side. He walks out of the room back into the kitchen and starts fussing with something. You stare after him, astounded. He was helping you again? Why?

You are pathetic, you are worthless, and all you are good for is complaining. You're useless and weak. He had no reason to be helping you!

As you puzzled over his kindness, you pulled your shirt over your head. It was deliciously warm. It smelled like him... You blush ever so slightly and yank your pants on. Standing and almost falling again, you clear your throat.

"S-Sollux...?" You call quizzically.

His head pokes into he room you're in, slightly tousled. "Yeah? You need help?"

You look down, ashamed at your weakness. You almost fall yet again as Sollux wraps your arm around his shoulder. "W-What?"

"Lean on me," he says simply. You try to take a step on your own, not putting any weight on your arm, but you pitch sideways into Sollux. He doesn't say anything but supports you into the kitchen.

He sets you in a chair and places a bowl of something that smelled heavenly in front of you. "Thoup?"

"Thanks..." You take the spoon he offers you and gingerly sample it. It's amazing... Almost like the chicken noodle soup He used to make...

When you think about Him, your stomach clenches and you can't eat any more. "This is good, Captor."

He nods. "Damn thtraight, I made it."

You almost smile at his comment.

You take a deep breath and notice the way you smell. Your stench was a mixture of old, mildew-y basement, dirt, sweat, and wet dog. You cringe. Sollux looks at you, his eyebrows creased slightly in the middle.

"You okay Ampora?"

"Yeah... It's just... Can I use your shower?"

"Yeah, thure, I'll thow you where it ith." He stands and offers you his arm. You stare disdainfully down your nose at it. You stand as steadily as you can and slowly, shakily take small steps towards the direction Sollux walks.


End file.
